Water is a necessity to every athletics team on the Plains nutritionally. For some though, the liquid of life is essential to how their sport is played. Swimming, bass fishing, water skiing, snow skiing and snowboarding all require water in some way to properly compete, but the one common state of water these sports lack is what we know as the solid form of H2O, the phenomenon of ice.
About 40 miles from campus lies the home of Auburn ice hockey, one of the newest club sports on the Plains. The Columbus Civic Center in Georgia has played host to the Tigers since the team's rebirth in 2010 after a 27-year hiatus. Originally created in 1980 to compete against Alabama before a Birmingham Bulls game, the Auburn hockey program has since emerged as a competitive force in the South Eastern Collegiate Hockey Conference.
The SECHC is comprised of 10 SEC affiliated universities separated into two divisions based on their location in the South. This year, Auburn competed against six of those teams including others from across the country. The annual SECHC tournament recently took place in Huntsville where the Arkansas Razorbacks won the championship for the third time in four years.
The Tigers recently wrapped up their season in the first round against Vanderbilt after losing in an overtime thriller 4-3. Finishing the year with a 7-17 regular season record, Dion Moore a sophomore defensemen for the team says the Tigers were somewhat disappointed in their play this season.
"Although we had a rocky season, I'm proud of the progress my team has made. Everyone worked hard and we came a long way," said Moore. "Our season was a bit rough due to the fact our team was very young, it takes time to develop chemistry on the ice. As the season went on the team became much more competitive."
The Auburn hockey program may come as a surprise to some students, but it was initially created in 1980. In front of 10,000 fans at the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center, Auburn won its inaugural match against Alabama 5-0. Original coach and player Emory Stapleton realized some of the Auburn students were capable of competing collegially and scheduled more games against established teams in the southeast.
The Tigers' first official win came against Emory on Nov. 9, 1981 after an opening five game losing streak. Despite the 0-5 start, Auburn finished their inaugural season with a 10-15-1 record including a 6-0 win over Alabama. Because of a lack of finances and charter from the University, the team went inactive until 2010.
Assistant Coach Elliott Chenger and friend James Florkiewicz were the driving force behind revamping the Auburn hockey team and after years of attempts the University agreed to allow hockey to become an Auburn club sport.
Most students who attend Auburn were raised in areas where hockey is rare. For the Tigers, most of their players were raised in northern areas where hockey is prominent or in large metropolitan areas where it was available.
For now the Tigers are growing as a program and have great expectations for the coming seasons.
"Although the program is young, we are making great strides to become a powerhouse in the South," said Moore.
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